Most commercial dairy farms use automatic milking equipment to milk cows, goats or other dairy animals. Such milking equipment typically includes a plurality of milking cups connected to a milking claw. The milking claw is connected to a milk collection receptacle via conventional flexible tubing.
The milking cups typically include a rubber liner received within a shell. Milking cup liners have various configurations, but commonly include an enlarged mouthpiece extending around the top of the shell, a liner barrel within the shell, and a short milk tube that extends from the bottom of the shell to the milking claw.
Automatic milking equipment typically cycles the pressure between the liner and the shell between negative and atmospheric pressure. The alternating pressure cycles cause the walls of the liner to massage and milk the teats of the udder. Continuous vacuum applied to the interior of the rubber liner moves the milk from the teats into the liner, then to the claw and to the milk collection receptacle.
Clean liners are essential for sanitation and to prevent infection of the animals of the herd. Commercial dairy farms typically employ a great number of milking cups and liners, thus must rely on automatic cleaning equipment for sanitizing. Automatic cleaning equipment typically includes a plurality of jetter cups for receiving and cleansing the milking cups. A jetter cup is a rubber cup into which the enlarged end portion of a milking cup is received. This avoids deformation of the mouth piece of the liner and allows circulation of cleaning solution around the outside of the liner for complete cleaning.
During milking, the jetter cups must be hung or stored out of the way for their protection and cleanliness, and to avoid cluttering the space. However, typical jetter cup storage units are difficult to use and easily damaged.
Some storage apparatuses employ wireform support members. To adequately insure cleanliness, the fit between an enveloping hood and the wires must be quite tight, which causes binding when the jetter-cups are slid into place. This often leads to improper storing of the jetter-cups, thus defeating the purpose of the protective hood. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 2,956,571. Other storage apparatuses provide holders having annular walls that define inverted truncated cones, but require negative pressure to retain the jetter cups thereon. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,592. Still other storage apparatuses include unprotected racks with grippers. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,431,116, issued Aug. 13, 2002, to M. Nilsson for Apparatus for Performing Animal Related Operations.
What is needed, and not taught or suggested in the art, is a jetter cup holder that retains a jetter cup without reliance on vacuum and prevents contamination.